Chapter 14

Hey everybody so sorry that this has taken so long but these last few weeks of summer have been crazy. What with finishing one job in Savannah, going back home to Texas, turning around in two weeks and going back to Savannah, moving into a new apartment, starting a new job, and getting ready for school to start; I haven't had a minute to breath, much less write, so sorry. I've been really wanting to work on finishing this story. I'm really excited about what I have planned for Keila and Hiccup, I've always wanted to write a blind character. Thanks for bearing with me.

Keila sat in a corner in Hiccup's room as she had been since she had opened her eyes the morning before. She was curled up against the red dragon, who she had named Nightshade. He was resting his head in her lap and snoring softly. She remembered when she was little and had been afraid of the dark, now it seemed she would never leave the dark again. She didn't want to walk anywhere, because the first time she tried she almost fell down the stairs. Thankfully no one had been around to see it, but Shade had caught her before she broke her neck. Hiccup and Gobber had been able to stitch up Nightshade's wing while his attention was on Keila who after crying for a good hour had passed out nestled in his neck.

Everyone had been in to talk to her, trying really hard to make sure they made sure to let her know they were coming. Everyone came in loudly saying, "It's me I'm coming in! I'm coming up. I'm in the room now. By the bed." Keila appreciated that they were trying, but she wished they would just stop. She could hear them when they stepped, and due to the variation of prosthetic and natural legs on Berk she could usually tell who was coming. The door opened downstairs and Shade stirred in her lap. She heard the scraping of claws on the wood, and Shade's irritated grumble, Toothless, she also heard a thump and the squeak as someone stepped inside, Hiccup, and two more light footsteps, probably Astrid.

"Keila it's Hiccup and Astrid we are coming up! Oh and uh Toothless is here too!" She heard Hiccup state, "Ok we are up-"

"Hiccup I can hear you come in you don't need to give me a blow by blow." Keila muttered

"Sorry."

Toothless's scraping got closer and she could hear him sniffing towards her. Shade lifted his head and rumbled. "Shh, Nightshade." The dragon nuzzled her hand,

"Nightshade, I like it." Hiccup said carefully.

"Everyone is going to go for a flight around the island. We'd strap your legs in so you could hold on with one hand. We figured you two should try for a real flight." Astrid said quickly.

"Nightshade's wing's still healing." Keila mumbled and leaned back into her dragon. She traced his scales with her good hand.

"Actually the patch job on his wing looks pretty good, the skin is already scarring, and we'd mostly glide anyway. I don't think we should try any hard maneuvering just yet, with your arm, his wing, and your ey- uh and um Toothless's new tail. Heh I just changed some of the calibrations, and I just want to try it out."

Toothless grunted at Hiccup, he was a horrible liar. Keila had no idea how he had kept Toothless a secret for so long.

Keila shook her head and went back to stroking Nightshade's tail fin.

"That's it!" Astrid said loudly startling Keila, she had gotten so quiet and still Keila had forgotten she was there.

Suddenly she felt a hand on the back of shirt hoisting her up, "Hey!?" Nightshade growled in protest. "Well, come on then dragon breath!" Astrid snapped. Astrid held Keila by her good arm and pushed her with a hand on her back.

"Astrid?!" Keila heard Hiccup shout. She tried not to stumble as Astrid forced her down the stairs. Nightshade followed closely behind with Hiccup stabling behind them.

When they got outside Keila could feel the wind on her face and the moisture in the air. She heard Toothless chirp behind her and Nightshade's protesting rumble. She also heard another familiar chirp, Stormfly. Astrid pushed Keila up onto Stormfly's back and lept up behind her. Keila didn't like not knowing what was happening. "Astrid what are you doing?" Keila yelled back. Astrid just grunted and pushed Stormfly into the sky. Keila heard Hiccup hook into Hiccup's saddle and take off. She also heard a loud fwap as Nightshade shot into the sky behind them.

"Astrid, I don't think this is helping!" Hiccup shouted over the wind.

Keila struggled to control her senses. Her ears were being bombarded by the wind and the flap of wings. She heard a sharp intake of air and could smell fire. "Astrid I don't know what you are doing, but we are about to get fried!" Astrid dodged as a shot flew over their heads. Keila could hear Nightshade preparing to take another shot.

"Shade, no!"

Nightshade ceased fire and settled with flying close to them. They landed hard and Astrid immediately jumped off and pulled keila to the ground with her. Keila stumbled and hit the dirt. She felt the ground shake as Nightshade ran between her and Astrid growling.

Hiccup landed near by.

"Astrid what are you doing?"

Keila used Nightshade to pull herself up. By the smell she figured they were in the arena.

"I'm tired of everyone sitting around feeling sorry for themselves!" Astrid snapped, then her voice grew softer Keila I'm sorry about your eyes, I really am, but you have got to stop hiding and face the facts, you need to learn how to live with this. And Hiccup! You have to stoop tiptoeing and help your cousin get used to how things are gonna be now."

"What? Me, I-"

Astrid cut Hiccup off, "Hiccup, you probably know better than anyone how Keila is feeling right now."

Keila couldn't be sure but she had a feeling Astrid meant Hiccup's leg.

"I-it's a bit different Astrid." Hiccup started softly.

"The point is you both could have died! Probably, should've, but you didn't. Hiccup you lost your leg, and I remember how hard that was for you at first, but you learned to make do and now I barely even notice anything's different."

Hiccup hesitated, "But, Astrid losing a leg and los-"

"Hiccup, you two are so alike it scares me. You look alike, talk alike, both think you're funny and you are both so stubborn, I could strangle you-"

"Um yeah, hey, I'm not deaf." Keila said waving her hand. Astrid sighed, took a few steps and said softly, "Hiccup you did it, and I know you can help Keila."

It got quiet. Keila turned her head all around trying to hear. "Hey guys, if you're giving me some sad look or something, you're gonna have to tell me, because I can't see... But, if you're like kissing or making goo goo eyes at each other I don't want to know."

Keila looked up as the sound of wings filled her ears and then three dragons hit the ground. Nightshade tensed again."Shh, boy."

A loud voice shout, "Hey are we doing this or not, Hookfang and I would rather not be out flying in the rain- oh, hey Keila..." Snotlout got quiet.

"Snotlout. And I assume Ruff and Tuff are here too? and Fishlegs?" Keila called.

"Haha yeah! That's so cool. You know I heard that sometimes when someone goes blind their hearing and stuff gets like way better." Fishlegs said awed.

"Yeah well my nose is definitely working, who had fish loaf for lunch, phew!"

"It was Ruffnut!" Tuffnut shouted.

Hiccup watched his cousin carefully as she conversed with his friends. Her head swiveled as she tried to focus on a sound or a voice, trying to locate everyone. The red dragon, Nightshade, watched everyone suspiciously as if he was thought at any moment one of them would attack Keila. He wasn't sure if the dragon trusted Keila really or not, but it was obvious he wanted to protect her, and that was usually part of the battle in training a dragon, getting it to care enough for it's rider.

The challenge would be get Keila to trust Nightshade enough, she would have to trust the dragon completely in fact if Hiccup's idea was going to work. And the dragon would have to stop trying to bite everyone that came near.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. "Uh guys we should get going it's going to start raining soon, and we need to help get the animals inside, Gobber said the storm is gonna be pretty bad."

Everyone mounted up except for Keila. Hiccup walked over to her and she turned her head towards him but her eyes looked left and right without focusing. "Keila, so are you gonna come?"

She stroked Shade's back. "Hiccup, I can't ride...I wasn't very good before, now I can't even steer, I can't tell when to pull up or go down, I don't...I can't..." She took a deep breath and tried her best to look at him, "Hiccup I'm blind." Her voice shook, "All that stuff we used to do, exploring, swimming, drawing, climbing trees, I will never be able to do any of that again."

"Who says?"

"How could I possibly fly Hiccup, if I can't see?"

"You are my crazy insane cousin, that's how." This was the first time he'd heard her say the b-word.

Keila looked scared, she spoke as if she didn't think he could hear her. "I can't see!"

Hiccup grabbed her hand and put it on Nightshade's nose, "But, he can."